Kaleidoscope Hearts
by Michelle Black a.k.a Elle
Summary: Series 5 Reboot: Three broken hearts - an ex-soldier, a thousand-year-old alien, and a naive shovel bum - cross paths in the most bizarre circumstances. Apart, they're just bits and parts of their old selves - pretty, but unremarkable - but when the pieces fuse together, they create the ultimate beauty: a life. AU
1. Chapter 1: The Pink Kidnappers

**Disclaimer: Doctor Who does not belong to me.**

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_Chapter 1: The Pink Kidnappers_

Charlie awoke with a gasp, her chest heaving as she took in large gulps of air. She pushed herself into a sitting position, her hands struggling with the metal cuffs on her wrist, and glanced around the pitch-black room. It took her eyes a couple of minutes to adjust before she realized she was in some sort of cell. She clamped her hands against her mouth to muffle her whimper, her eyes squeezing shut.

"Don't panic, don't panic, don't panic." She muttered to herself, taking deep breaths. She dared to glance around. There were chains hanging from the wall next to her and the little light there was came from the open space in front of her.

She shuffled forward and tentatively raised a hand. There was resistance. _Like a force field_, she thought. She groaned and shifted back to where she was. Something caught the corner of her eye. She turned and saw a large lump on the other side of the room. It was a man.

Charlie gasped and crawled her way towards the man. He was a very skinny bloke, his dirty pinstripe suit emphasizing his lankiness, his hands handcuffed high above his slumped body. She snorted at the sight of the red converse that adorned his feet.

"Hey." She whispered, shaking his shoulder gently, bending her head to catch a glimpse of his face, but all she could see was his spiky hair. He didn't move. "Sir, please, wake up."

She gave up after a couple of minutes and curled herself next to him. She pressed herself tighter against him as she felt the first trembles skitter across her body and closed her eyes. Abducted.

Charlie had waited outside her hotel for a taxi to take her to the outskirts of the Amazon forest for the fourth day of work. She had been really excited about this expedition. This job was her last days as a shovel bum, but it was all gone now. She might never get home.

She buried her face against her hands and cried. It felt like hours before she felt the man shift underneath her. She sat up, quickly wiping her eyes and nose, and stared at the man. He groaned and lifted his head.

He was very good-looking in a bookish sort of way. His dark eyes looked around the room, cloudy, before they focused on her.

"Well." He said, "A vast improvement from the last time I woke up. I won't go into details, but lets just say the Klintesh and dim lighting don't mix well. I'm the Doctor by the way. What are you here for?"

Charlie could feel herself relax. She knew she'd like this man from the moment she saw the red sneakers. "No idea. I'm Charlie. It's actually Charlene, but only my mum and my boss call me that." She gave the room another look. "Who are the Klintesh? Are they our kidnappers?"

"Who says I was kidnapped?"

"Are you saying you just invited yourself here?" She asked incredulously. She reached forward and lightly shook his chains. " I hate to break it to you, Doctor, but you picked the wrong people to play house with."

The Doctor smiled. "I like you, Charlie."

"Thanks. So," She began, leaning herself against the wall, wincing as she dragged her jointed legs up to her chest. "Who are the Klintesh?"

He sighed and rested his head against the wall. "The Klintesh are very peaceful creatures. Well, they_were. _Very pretty in the right lighting. Big almond eyes and their skin the color of a cat's tongue. Their planet is light years away from here. In a different galaxy actually. Don't know why they would come here to kidnap us though."

"Hold on. Pink skin? Planet?" Charlie shook her head. "Are you saying they're…they're_aliens?"_

_"_Yup." He said, popping the 'p' at the end. He tilted his head at her. "I'm alien too."

She stared at him. He stared back. Charlie leaned forward and pulled on his cheek.

"Ow!" The Doctor pulled his head away from her and attempted to rub his reddening cheek against his shoulder. "Why'd you do that for?"

She ignored him and shuffled closer, placing her bonded hands on his chest. She could hear his heart. He gazed at her warily. She furrows her eyebrows at him. "You don't look or sound like an alien."

Before the Doctor could say anything, Charlie moves her hands to the other side of the chest. She could hear another heartbeat. "H-How?'

The Doctor's gaze softened. "Alien, remember?"

Without hesitating, the woman placed her head against his chest, dragging her hands to the other heart. She closed her eyes, allowing the sound of his heartbeats to wash over her. "Two hearts. Brilliant, Doctor, you are brilliant."

The Doctor smiled down at the woman . "Thank you."

She pulled away and raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you have anything else doubled? Two brains? Four lungs?"

"No,but I do have a spare hand though. I mean I did. My last companion accidentally created a new me with it." He shook his head. "Never mind. Long story."

Before Charlie could comment, the room was suddenly filled with bright lights. They both groaned and shielded their eyes.

"Absolutely horrid table manners." she mumbled, rubbing her eyes. She finally looked up and gasped. They really_were_aliens.

The creature before her was tall and lanky, much skinnier than the Doctor. Its skin a rosy pink and its eyes black and shaped like almonds. It was wearing a dark purple robe that contrasted sharply with its skin tone. The alien was flanked by two others-much bigger if that was even possible-dressed in white robes and carrying a silver sphere in their hands.

"Doctor, , I am ever so happy that you accepted our invitation to visit our ship." It purred, a smile grazing its pale lips. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Kuu and I am the Captain of this vessel. These are my men; Tra'a and Kaa."

"Pleasure. May I ask why we were graciously extended these invitations?" the Doctor asked.

Charlie interrupted, " Can you both cut the fake pleasantries? It's utterly ridiculous. How did you know my name was Potter? I never said my name."

Kuu's smile widened. Charlie winced at the sharp teeth that glistened under the artificial light. " But Ms. Potter, my people know you. You are the human that single-handedly brought our planet to the brink of extinction."

The woman gasped, her wide eyes meeting the Doctor's startled ones. She shook her head furiously. "No! No, you got it all wrong, it's not me. I've never left Earth! I didn't even know there were other planets with life until now."

Kuu didn't look perturbed. "Are you or are you not Charlene Grace Potter?"

Charlie paled. She gazed wordlessly at the man next to her.

"Captain Kuu." The alien turns to meet the Doctor's determined face. "There has to be a mistake. How is your planet endangered and by a mere human girl? She couldn't have had the power or knowledge to bring down an entire race! No offense Charlie."

The young woman nodded furiously, her hands raised up in a silent prayer. Kuu stood straighter and clasped its hands behind its back. " She didn't, but you did._For her_."

Both prisoners were speechless, gazing at the Klintesh. Charlie whimpered and buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking.

"Come,come, now , there is no need to cry. My people have already forgiven you and your Doctor." the alien cooed. The young woman lifted her head, her eyes blood shot and tears staining her red cheeks.

"P-please. W-we didn't d-do anything. Please,_please_, release us." She begged.

"If we are forgiven, why are we imprisoned? The Klintesh I know would never do this." The Doctor spoke at the same time, shooting a comforting look towards his new friend. She was too young for this kind of thing.

"You would be surprise at how quickly people change when facing starvation." Kuu said, running a hand down its robe. It looked up surprised. "Did I say forgiven? Excuse me, my english is very poor, I mean you_will_ be forgiven once you have repaid us. With your lives."

Charlie broke into sobs and quickly buried her face into her knees again. The Doctor's eyes widened. He lunged forward, the chains jerking him back, his face set into a snarl.

"You can't do that! We're innocent!"

Captain Kuu smiled serenely and bend forward to pet the young woman's hair. She flinched back, her shoulders heaving. "Ah,but I can. Rest tonight, my dear friends, tomorrow your punishment will await." the alien lead its soldiers outside the cell. It paused, " How does your people say it? Oh, pleasant dreams, Doctor, Ms. Potter."

The cell was plunged into darkness. The only sounds were the Doctor's angry breathing and Charlie's sobs. After a while, the Doctor sighed and turned to face the young woman.

"Charlie."

She looked up at him, wiping her face with shaky hands. "Doctor." She croaked, "Captain Kuu is absolutely insane. Why would he think..?"

The Doctor gazed up at the ceiling, his face turned thoughtful. "We could have…in the future."

She looked at him incredulously. "Time-traveling?"

He nodded excitedly, a giant smile grazing his face. "Brilliant, isn't it? Don't know why I didn't think of it sooner. Don't you see,Charlie? They were hoping to find our future selves to punish, but got us too early!"

"Great. They're going to kill us over something we haven't even done yet." She sighed, rubbing her forehead. The Doctor smiled sadly, "Come here."

He waited patiently as she rested her head on his chest. "I'm sorry I put you through this. Apparently, I always put my companions in danger, but I promise you Charlie I will get you out of here alive. I just need you to trust me and to be as brilliant as I know you can be. Can you do that for me?"

The young woman met his gaze. "Yeah, of course. I didn't get my dream job by sniveling and cowering in my boots you know." She pushed herself up and gave him a confident smile. "So, Doctor, What's the plan?"

He grinned, "Atta girl! Now, inside my jacket, on the left side, there should be a pocket, you should find a metal stick."

Charlie reached forward to do as he said. "Good, now if you flip that flap, you'll find four buttons. Press the third one down and point it at my cuffs."

She pointed the sonic screwdriver towards each of his metal cuffs and watched in awe as they broke away from him.

"Ah, that's better." The Doctor exclaimed, stretching out like cat. Charlie quickly pointed the screwdriver to her feet and shoves the cuffs off.

"This is amazing. What do you call this thing?" She asked, allowing him to take the screwdriver back to undo her own.

"Sonic screwdriver. Can open anything and reverse anything. Now, let's go."

They hurried to the force field. He trailed the sonic around the ream of their cell.

"Try it." He called. She walked forward and met no resistance. She turned back to grin at him. The Doctor grinned back and gave her a high-five. He leads down the corridor, his sonic lighting the way.

"If I can find the transport room, I can call the Tardis and we'll be able to go home."

"Tardis?" She panted as they raced down a maze of corridors.

"Yes, my ship. I have a key here that if I touch it can let her find us and teleport us away." He spouted quickly, "She's very clever that way."

Two Klintesh guards suddenly appear at the end of the corridor, metal spheres in their hands. The Doctor and his new companion spun around and headed down the corridor and turn in another one, mindful of the guards following them.

Before they reached the end of the corridor, another pair of guards appeared.

"Charlie, in here." The Doctor whipped open a door next to him and ushered her in before locking it with his sonic. Charlie whimpered, trembling as she stared at the sight in front of her.

"My, if I knew how eager you were to seek forgiveness I wouldn't have postponed it for tomorrow." Kuu greeted from its chair in the center, its bodyguards flanking him. "I suppose we could do it now if you like."

"Captain Kuu, as impressed as we are at your dedication, we really do have better things to do than die. Why, like I had told Charlie before coming here, there's this amazing planet filled with noseless dogs. Oh! And you couldn't believe the amount of planets that contain Prika. Nasty little buggers. Worse than Earth's mosquitos." The Doctor rambled, casually stepping nearer to Charlie and slipping his screwdriver into one of her back pockets.

"Very amusing, Doctor. Kaa. Tra'a." the Captain commanded, getting up from his seat. The two guards approached them. Charlie back away, her hands up. One of the guards grabbed her wrist and twisted it behind her back, making her cry out.

The Doctor could only say her name before he was shoved to his knees, his hands bonded behind him with the metal sphere.

Captain Kuu clapped his hands. "Great. Now that that's settled, who would like to go first?"

They both stayed silent. The alien tutted, "Shame, I was hoping for a show of bravery. Bring the Doctor first."

One of the bodyguards dragged him forward, throwing him at Kuu's feet. Charlie was struggling against the other bodyguard, tears growing in her eyes as she called out the Doctor's name. Kuu smiled, his eyes trailing the Doctor's form, and pulled out a long metal stick from his robe.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting for this. How long my_people_ have been waiting for this." He murmured, caressing his weapon. " and now it shall all end. Any last words Doctor?"

The brunette looked up at him, his face carefully blank. "You are making a grave mistake, Captain Kuu. Sacrificing whole civilizations and galaxies for petty revenge. Rethink this. Let us go. You are committing suicide."

Kuu laughed. The cold laughter crawled down their spines. " Ah, Doctor, I'm not afraid of death. Not mine nor of the billions you claim I'll cause because of your death." He leaned forward, his face inches from the Doctor. There was no smile. No amusement written in the alien's eyes. Just madness and ice. " I stopped caring the moment I saw thousands of my brothers and sisters drop dead from starvation and murder. Why would I care about others when no one helped us? No, Doctor, your death and of your friend will bring the Klintesh the justice and peace we yearn for."

Kuu, without breaking eye contact, plunge the metal into the Doctor's chest. Charlie screamed, thrashing against the guard, her blurry eyes not hiding the Doctor's pained face.

"Goodbye Doctor." Kuu said cheerily, and plucked out his weapon. The Doctor slumped to the ground, his eyes racing around the room. They met Charlie's and held them.

"Sonic." He mouthed, his back arching as he felt the pain cause one of his hearts to collapse. With her own racing, she nodded and took a deep breath. The young woman stomped on the guard's foot and smashed the back of her head against his face. The guard cried out and released her, his hands clutching his face.

Charlie dropped herself to the ground and swiped her legs across the guard's feet, knocking him on his back. She rolled herself back to her feet, her hands stretching to reach the sonic screwdriver in her back pocket.

"Ooo, I didn't know we had a fighter in our mix. You really shouldn't have held this a secret, Doctor." Kuu tutted, his eyes dancing in amusement. "It'll be very fun killing you, . Tra'a."

Tra'a stalked his way towards her, but by that time Charlie had already freed herself and threw the metal sphere at his head. He ducked. She ran to the other side of the room and found a long metal stick like Captain Kuu's, except it was thicker and had a black button at the bottom .

She turned around and swung the stick at Tra'a, pressing the black button. The stick's end erupted into electricity and hit him on the side of his head. The guard dropped to the floor. She turned her attention to Kuu.

"You want to try me too?" She panted, holding her stick higher. Kuu smirked, but raised his hands up, dropping his stick to the floor. "Good, now step away from him."

She made her way slowly to Kuu, picking up the metal sphere along the way, and stood a few feet away from him.

"Place your hand behind your back and turn." She commanded. He complied. She pressed the sphere against his wrists and it morphed into shackles.

"Are we quite done?" He drawled. The young woman glared at the back of his head and kicked the back of his legs, making him buckle and fall to the ground.

"No not really." She purred, before swinging the metal stick against his head, flattening him to the floor. She bent down to check his pulse. It was slow, but still there. She straightened up and dropped the stick. "Now, I'm done."

"C-Charlie." the Doctor moaned. She gasped and race to his side, dumping herself on her knees. She grabbed one of his hands. Tears and sweat were cascading down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry I didn't stop Kuu in time. Please don't die." She blubbered, gripping his hand tightly in-between both of hers. " We're suppose to travel together remember? How else am I suppose to meet the Klintesh and cause all this mess. I don't exactly have the means to make intergalactic travels."

He chuckled, but that quickly turned into a coughing fit. She tightened her grip. He gazed at her and lifted his free hand to cup her face. He notice his hand glowing slightly.

"I don't want to go." His voice broke, his eyes glistening with tears. "There's still so much I haven't done yet. So much I wanted to show you. I wanted you to be_my_companion."

Charlie sobbed, grabbing the hand on her face. Tears blurred her vision. "I am your companion. You just need to stay with me. Please, your Tardis hasn't arrived yet."

The Doctor shook his head, he was already seeing golden particles surrounding him. "Charlie, listen to me, you need to get far away from me. Hide behind something, I don't care. Just get to safety."

"W-why?" She whimpered, her eyes widening as she finally notice the golden glow that was appearing all around him "Doctor? What's going on?"

"Regeneration." He gritted out, his back arching as he felt the energy bounce restlessly inside him. " My body releases energy that heals my body from the deadliest injuries, but in exchange I'm turned into a completely new man."

He groans, the energy was spiking faster.

"New man?" The young woman whispered, her hands covering her mouth. His pain-filled eyes met hers.

"Yes, but Charlie please, I'll essentially be the same man. I'll still be the Doctor." He urged. His hands curled into firsts and he slammed his eyes shut. " GO! I can't hold it in any longer."

She ran to the center of the room and hid herself in Kuu's chair. The Doctor screamed and suddenly he exploded, a cloud of golden light flooding the entire room. The machines in the room short-circuited and burst into flames.

Charlie ducked her head into her legs and clamped her hands against her ears as the Doctor's screams echoed through out the room. The heat from the light and the fires licking at her bare arms.

Then it all just stopped.

She pushed herself up to see over the console chair. The Doctor was young, looking to be around her age. He had long dark hair that curled slightly against his forehead and softer features from his previous face, except for the large chin. She cautiously unraveled herself from the chair and made her way towards him.

He didn't notice her. He was too busy muttering and checking himself. "- Arms, hands,ooh, fingers, lots of fingers. Ears,yes, eyes too. Nose? I've had worse. Chin? Blimey. Hair…"

He ran a hand through his hair and gasped violently, yanking his cliff to eye level. "I'm a girl!" his voice cracked, his hands automatically reaching for his throat. "No, no. Definitely not a girl." His expression darkened. "Still not a ginger though. There's something else, there's something that I'm forgetting. Something important…"

"Doctor?" Charlie asked hopefully, wincing as a machine next to her gave out a spark. The man whirled around, his vivid green eyes boring into her face.

"Ah!" He cried, pointing at her. "I remember you. Claire? Cher? No, that's not it. Think, think, think." He slapped himself on the forehead.

"Charlie?" She supplied, crossing her arms and biting back a smile. This one was definitely a nutter. He scrunched his face.

"No, that's not it either. Caera, Carly, Carrie. Why does it start with the letter C? Out of all the alphabets in the universe and your mum had to pick the dullest letter._C." _He said in disgust. The ship gave a violent shake, knocking them both into the ground.

"Doctor! Never mind my name. Just call the Tardis so that we can get out of here." She shouted, struggling to get back on her feet.

"Right!" He shouted back, reaching inside his jacket pocket. A wheezing sound filled the air and a blue police box slowly materialized in front of them. The Doctor reached forward to caress the door.

"Hello there old girl!" He cooed, before opening the door. He turned back with a wide grin. "What are you waiting for? Into the Tardis. Scoot!"

Charlie snapped out of her daze and hurried into the box. She halted by the door, her eyes wide.

"Holy cricket." She breathed.

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_**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Kaleidoscope Hearts. This is my first Doctor Who story so constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. As for the Doctor's timeline, the tenth Doctor's storyline has been kept intact except of course his final episode. The Eleventh's, however, will be vastly different from his original timeline. I'm sorry; no Amy or Rory or Clara. I actually considered continuing Charlie's adventure with the tenth- he was so much fun to write!- but after some meditating and consulting my sister I decided to keep it with the Eleventh. **_

_**Please take the time to review so I can continue posting. Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope to see you until the end.**_


	2. Chapter 2: Lagniappe

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who nor do I write for them._**

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"So Timelords can travel through time _and_ space in ships that are bigger on the inside. "Charlie said slowly, ducking as a shoe flew past her. The Doctor stepped out from behind french dividers wearing a cream button down shirt and blue suspenders that peeked out from beneath his brown tweed jacket.

"What do you think?" He grinned, doing a pirouette. She snorted. Barely two hours had passed and she still hadn't gotten over how ridiculous he was. Charlie leaned back against her hands and surveyed him.

"Well if you want to look like my old history professor back in uni than you look fantastic." she smiled sweetly, batting her eyelashes. The Doctor scrunched his face and pointed at her.

"Don't do that. Oh! Shoes." He said, whirling around to the giant wardrobe, passing the floor-length mirror. He paused, twisting and bending to admire himself. "Good, good. Missing something though…"

"Tie maybe?"" Charlie offered, stepping up behind him. He smiled at her.

"Right! I _knew_ I liked you." He cried, before dashing off to the wardrobe.

She watched him go with a little smile. Charlie turned back to the mirror and gasped. It had been awhile since the last time she checked herself. Her work clothes- a black tank top and green cargo pants- were caked with ash and blood. Her wheat color hair was falling out of its braid, dark circles under her brown eyes, and soot and sweat covered her face and arms. She was a complete wreck.

"Doctor! Can I borrow some clothes?" She called, moving towards the other side of the room where she could see feminine clothes. He muffled out his agreement. After a few minutes, she gathered up her new clothes; black leggings and a big fluffy sweater. She paused. The Doctor had said the Tardis was sentient.

"Um, Tardis, can you show me to a bathroom? I would really like to shower." She said awkwardly. Nothing happened. She sighed and turn to go ask the Doctor, but froze as she felt a tingle in the back of her mind. Slowly, a blue print of the ship appeared behind her eyelids. A red dot glowed three doors down from where she was. She opened her eyes and grinned at the ceiling.

"That was brilliant. Thank you." She said, before hurrying out the door.

She was in the middle of rinsing out her hair when the panic set in. Her breaths were coming faster, but she didn't notice. Her eyes were staring blankly at the tile walls. Images of the dying doctor, the dark cell, and the cold empty eyes of the Klintesh burned against her mind.

She sank to the floor, her arms wrapped around her waist. "Oh God." She moaned,rocking herself. "Oh God."

Charlie had enough self-awareness to know she was naive. She had a steady job as a field technician. She had great friends. She had a loving mother. Her life was a decent mixture of life and chaos. And maybe that's why she never thought about abduction. Because being abducted only happened in the movies, not to normal people like her.

She shuddered as the image of the Doctor being stabbed played in loop in her mind. She fisted her hair in her hands trying to force the horrible images out of her brain.

A warm tingle caressed her mind. _Concern_. Charlie looked up at the ceiling and shakily smiled.

"I'm fine. It's just a late reaction." She whispered, reaching out to turn off the faucet. Another tingle entered her mind. "Really, Tardis, you don't have to get the Doctor. I'm fine."

She smiled one more time at the ceiling, before slowly getting out of the tub. The trembling and short breaths had stopped thankfully. She was almost back to her normal self, but she knew that the memories will haunt her.

Charlie stepped into the console room, a satisfied sigh escaping her. The Doctor was checking the monitor and talking rapidly about Big Ben and bananas. He stopped when he finally noticed her.

"Charlie-girl! Come here." He grinned, rushing forward to take her hand and pulled her to the monitor. "Ooo, I like your sweater. A very nice shade of Tardis blue. Good choice. Look, I found a bow tie. Bow ties are cool!"

"Yes, very cool. What's up, Doctor?" She asked, gently extracting her hand from the excitable alien. He grinned widely at her and tapped the console."Sexy, bring out her present."

Charlie raised her eyebrow, but was distracted as a small hole appeared in between the hundreds of buttons on the console. A silver key popped out. The Doctor caught it and pressed it against the palm of her hand.

"When we were in the Klintesh spaceship, you said you were my companion. I thought I would make it official." He said softly.

The blonde blinked, staring up at the Doctor's smiling face. She curled her fingers around the key and placed it inside her left boot. "Thank you, Doctor." She croaked, rubbing her eyes to get rid of the sting.

He smiled again and patted her head. "So, all of time and space, everything that ever happened or everything that will, right at your fingertips" He spread his arms wide. "Where do you want to start?"

She ran her fingers across a Gallifreyan symbol, her face thoughtful. "Some where exciting, something out of this world you know?" She raised a finger, "But nowhere life-threatening. I've had enough of near death experiences for today."

"Excellent! I have the perfect place." The Doctor clapped. He ran around, pressing buttons and turning levels, typing, before standing back next to Charlie. He nudge her. "You see that big blue button? Press it and hold on to something."

She grinned and complied. The Tardis started shaking, the familiar wheezing noise filling the air. She grabbed on to the console.

"Geronimo!" the Doctor shouted. She laughed, squealing as she bumped into him a couple of times. Finally, the Tardis stopped. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the door.

"Welcome to the planet Lagniappe." He said, before pulling the door open. Charlie gasped and leaned against the door frame. The planet was covered in water that glowed blue. A mile away, Charlie could make out several huts floating in the water, illuminated by the two giant moons hovering in the black sky.

"How?" She asked, turning to face the Doctor. He smiled and gestured to sit down.

"Beautiful isn't it. It's their plants actually." He said, taking off his boots, before sticking his feet into the water. She followed suit. She was surprised by how warm it was. "Each little sparkle is actually a plant. It's the equivalent of Earth's algae."

"It's amazing!" She breathed, reaching forward to dip her hand in.

"You should see it in the morning. The entire planet turns a brilliant shade of red." Charlie turned to hug the Doctor.

"Thank you for taking me here." She murmured. He returned the hug, placing his chin against her head.

"Thank you for staying with me after I transformed." He murmured. She pulled back and gave him an incredulous look.

"Of course I did silly. I'm your companion." She said haughtily, squeezing his sides before pulling away. "Now, I insist on swimming a lap around the Tardis. Can you swim Doctor?"

He snorted and puffed out his chest. "I'm the best swimmer there is. _I _taught Michael Phelps how to swim, you know."

Charlie grinned and stood up, taking off her sweater in one swift movement. She ignored the spluttering and redness that over took the Doctor. She wanted to swim and she wasn't going to let his sensitivity ruin her chance.

"Well prove it then, spaceman." She challenged, before jumping into the water.

The splash drenched him.

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_**Reviews are always welcomed.**_


	3. Chapter 3: Edward Tooms Pt1

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who.**_

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The sun was setting behind the trees and the stifling heat was quickly being erased by a biting wind. A group of archaeologists carrying digging supplies, emerged from the Amazon forest and headed for the trucks lined up at the outskirts. Two people broke away from the group for a moment. A stocky man with spiky blue hair turned to his co-worker.

"You sure you don't want to come with us? I'm sure they'll have your favorite drink. Besides, I sort of already made a bet with a couple of the guys that you could drink -up-his-ass under the table." He said, wagging his eyebrow at her. Charlie laughed and shoved him playfully. "Please say you'll come. I'll share the profits with you."

"Thanks, but I'll pass. I've already made plans." She said apologetically, placing down her shovel to redo her braid. The blue-haired man scoffed and crossed his arms.

"You've had plans for the last two weeks. What's going on Potter?" His eyes widened. "Holy shit, you're fucking someone aren't you. Tell me the truth!"

Charlie rolled her eyes and made her way back to the group. "Don't be so crass, Mike."

"You're avoiding the question." He grinned, following after her. He stepped into the last truck, pulled her into it and firmly shut the door, preventing anyone else from getting in. "I knew it from the first day you came to work with this huge satisfied grin on your face. Ever Mr. Holiness could see it."

Charlie glared at him. "I'm not seeing anyone." She said firmly. Mike opened his mouth, but she quickly placed her hand over it. "I'm not. Not in the sense you think I am. I just…" She struggled for a moment. "He's a really good friend. We take mini-trips and he dresses like a grandfather and he eats the strangest things and he's incredibly silly, but that's it. He's just a friend."

She cautiously pulled her hand away. Her blue-haired friend shot her an incredulous look. "So you decided to abandon this fine piece of male specimen" gesturing to himself, " for a man that is fashionably-impaired and has a stomach that the bloke from Weird Food travels would be jealous to have? Are you sure he isn't your boyfriend?"

The blonde laughed. "Very sure. He's like my little brother except that he's freakishly tall."

They arrived at the base. It was a giant yellow office building with a collage of the world's Seven Wonders drawn at the side of it. Mike opened the door to the car and helped her out. Once they went inside to put away their gear and clean up their appearance, they quickly found themselves outside once more.

"Last chance to ditch your strange friend and come with me. I promise to show you a good time." He winked, placing his hands behind his head. Charlie smiled and shook her head.

"I know you would, but I really do have plans. See you Monday." She said, reaching forward to squeeze his arm. Mike sighed and bid her farewell, jogging to the back of the building where his car was held. Before he slipped from view, he turned back to face her.

"Do you need a ride home?" He called.

"It's fine. He's picking me up." She shouted back. He nodded and waved.

Charlie stood by the entrance of the office for a moment, listening for the signs that he left. Satisfied, she reached into her bag and pulled out a silver key. She smiled as she heard the familiar wheezing noise. Patting down her damp braid, she opened the Tardis doors.

"Honey, I'm home." She sang playfully, dropping her bag on the little seat and approached the console. She rubbed it. "How is the mighty Tardis lady feeling today?" She closed her eyes and smiled as she felt a rush of warm affection pulse into her heart. "Splendid it is. Where's the Doctor?"

"I'm here!"

A loud crash sounded underneath the console followed by a string of Gallifreyan expletives. Charlie walked to the railing and leaned over it.

"Doctor?" She called, trying to catch a glimpse of him. "Are you alright?"

"Fine,fine." He popped up in front of her. She shrieked and jumped back, her hand grasping her chest. The Doctor pulled his googles over his head and winced, shooting her an apologetic look.

"Sorry. How did your digging go? Did you find anything yet? If you want I could pop back a few to tell the Incas to leave something here. I knew their king you know. Though I don't know how friendly he'll be since I married his daughter the last time I was there." He frowned thoughtfully, fiddling with his bow tie. Charlie smirked.

"It's fine. I'd rather not risk the chance of you missing your hearts if the king does remember you." She yanked on one of his suspenders. He yelped. "Besides, I won't be a shovel bum for long."

The Doctor rubbed at his chest as he climbed up to the platform. He shot her a look of disgust. "I don't understand human's love of archaeology. Waste of energy, I'd say."

The blonde rolled her eyes and bounced next to him at the controls. "So, where are we going today?" She asked, watching him fiddle with the buttons. "I rather liked America in the 60s. Who knew Hoover was an alien impostor?"

The Doctor snorted. "No, you liked the 60s because you snogged the President."

She batted her eyelashes at his amusement. "Well can you blame me? President Kennedy was incredibly charming and extremely attractive." She pointed a finger at his face. "Oi, and _he_ snogged _me._ Get your facts straight Spaceman." She poked his nose.

He slapped her hand away and yanked a level. The Tardis immediately started convulsing. Charlie grabbed on.

"I was thinking of taking you to Space Vegas." The Doctor shouted, typing in the coordinates. "You'll love it!"

"If it's anything like Earth's Vegas then I'm sure I will." She shouted back.

The Tardis landed and the Doctor quickly headed for the doors. Charlie stayed put. It took him a couple of seconds to realize she wasn't there.

"What are you waiting for? Space Vegas!" He exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "You might even be able to take a picture with a three-eyed Elvis."

Charlie crossed her arms. "Check the monitor."

He groaned. "Don't be ridiculous. We're in Space Vegas."

"You said that the last five times we attempted to actually plan a trip. I almost lost my life three times!" She pointed out, glaring at him. "Check. The. Monitor."

The Doctor dragged himself up to console, a scowl firmly etched on his face. He grabbed the monitor and typed for a moment. He paused,staring at the screen for a moment.

"Well?"Charlie asked, leaning against the console with a smirk. The Doctor turned to her sheepishly. "No Space Vegas, I take it."

"No,no,no. I can fix it. Space Vegas coming up." The Doctor began fiddling with some buttons. Charlie shook her head and stilled his hands.

"Where are we exactly?" She asked. The Doctor looked at the monitor again.

"Oxford university, Oxford, 1940."

His companion gasped and tugged him down the platform towards the door. "That's in the middle of WWII! Let's go see."

"Wait!" He tugged her back, almost knocking her off her feet. "You can't go like that, you'll start a riot!"

Charlie looked down at herself. She was wearing leggings again with another colorful sweater. She scrunched her nose at him. "They still haven't invented leggings yet?"

"Nope." He popped the P. He pointed towards the hall. "Go on. The sooner you go change, the sooner I can introduce you to Benny Goodman."

She sighed and walked away from the doors. "Fine, but I'm not wearing a skirt. I didn't shave today and I'm not planning to."

Charlie came back, adjusting her light hair inside a brown cap she found. Once she was satisfied that her hair was somewhat hidden, she turned her attention towards the Doctor. She giggled as she watched him struggle underneath a pile of ties, a fedora sitting haphazardly on his head.

"I think you should keep the bow tie and lose the fedora." She said in a deep voice. He looked up startled. He stared at her.

"You like?" She said, twirling for him with a wink. He seem to snap out of whatever he was in and dump the ties on the floor.

"Y-You look like-" He stuttered.

"A guy. I know. That was the point. I didn't want to explain myself once I introduce myself as Charlie or why I was wearing pants." She said nonchalantly, adjusting her grey sweater. "Besides, I always wanted to cross dress."

"Right."He said slowly, before he seem to register what she had said and gripped his fedora tightly. "I like this hat. I'm wearing this hat. "

She raised her hands in surrender and headed for the door. "You're the boss."

"Yes."He said, smiling goofily. "I _am_ the boss. -Doctor. Don't you forget it."

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_**Reviews are greatly appreciated. **_


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